One-piece fiberboard shipping container



April 21, 1953 an BELSINGER 2,635,302

ONE-PIECE FIBERBOARD SHIPPING CONTAINER Filed Dec. 15, 1949 sSheets-Sheet i INVENTOR. SAMUEL I? EELS/N667? BY I M m, 3L: a ATTORNEYSApril 21, 1953 s. P. BELSINGER 2,635,802

ONE-PIECE FIBERBOARD SHIPPING CONTAINER Filed Dec. 15, 1949 I 3Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. SAMUEL I? EELS/N65? BY ATTORNEYS Patented Apr.21, 1953 ONE-PIECE FIBERBOAR'D SHIPPING CONTAINER Samuel P. Belsinger,Atlanta, Gan, assignor to Belsinger, Inc., Atlanta, Ga., a corporationoi Georgia Application December 15, 1949, Serial .No.I33,038

which can be sold and shipped as such, or as a sub-assembly or tubularform or as a further partial assembly in which the bottom wall flaps andcertain of the top flaps have been located and connected: and in whichthe assembled container is of depth capable of holding piece goods inthe bolt and of receiving such bolts through an opening provided in suchfurther partial assembly by a front door structure formed in theoriginalblank and having connected therewith top wall flaps which uponclosing of the door structure serve to stiiien the container duringtransit; and in which the assembled container can be opened byreleasingsaid door structure, whereafter the container can be employed foraccessibly storing the contents while the closed door structure servesto exclude dirt.

Another feature of the invention is the provision of a container and ablank thereforoi fiber board, corrugated board and like stifily flexiblematerials herein referred to as fiber board; wherewith the same may becut and shipped .in

the flat or in a sub-assembly conditiomand .set up and its partsconnected read to receive the contents, with side, bottom and rear wallscon-- nected with one another and with parts :of the 1 top and frontwalls likewise connected, while other parts of the top and front wallscan swing about hinge lines provided by the blank material itselfwhereby to permit easy loading and unloading.

.A further. feature is the provision of such a container and the blanktherefor, in which the swingable parts of the top and front walls areconnected together at hinge lines provided by theblankmaterial itself,and when in closed positions come into alignment and abutment with otherparts of the container assembly whereby the contents can be sealed offby closing tapes extending in planes across abutment lines and extendingaround abutment corners.

A further feature is the provision of "such a container and a blanktherefor, having a total height in excess of the reach of the normalpacker :(e. g. :greaterthan 28 inches) andzso-conformed and arrangedthat the packer has reach- 2 ing access to the inner bottom wall foraligning and avoiding distortionhof the contents at the bottom.

With these and other features as objects .in view, as will appear in thecourse of the following description and claim, illustrative forms ofpracticing the invention are shown on the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

Figure 1 .is a lay-out diagram of a blank for the construction of afirst form of the container.

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing a container formed from the blankof Figure 1, in partly assembled condition and ready for packing orunpacking.

Figure 3 is av perspective view of the same container in fully assembledor closed position, ready for shipment.

Figure 4 is a lay-out diagram of a blank 0 a modified form of container.l

Figure 5 shows a partially assembled container as set up from the blankof Figure 4,..ready for unloading.

Figured is a perspective view of the same container, in fully assembledand closed condition, ready for shipment.

Figure 7 is a perspective view indicating the collapsing of a containersub-assembly at the factory for flat shipment.

The blank of Figure l is .ofrectangular outline, and it will be notedthat there is-essentially no wastage. of material. The illustratedcontainers have two wide wallsand two narrow walls sothat they areoblong horizontal cross-section, wherewith the wider walls are hereindesignated as front and .rear panels, and the narrower walls aredesignated as side panels, but it will be understood that this isintended as illustrative and that the-container may have various hori-.zontal cross-sections as .best adapted .for the goods to be packed.

The blank of Figure :1 hasthe successive arrangement of'a side wallall), a rear wall H, a side wallula-Z, and -airont wall comprised of twosub-panels I3 and I30, separatedby aweakening line illustrated as ahorizontal cut 14. These wall panels are separated successively from oneanother at .fold lines :15 which will later provide vertical hinges oredges in the assembly. Correspondingly, the wall panels are connectedacrossruppertold "lines il 6:1with corresponding top naps 20., 21, 22,23, these .flaps being separated successively from one another by cutlines tor gashes 24. likewise, each ctr-the panels. is :connected acrossa doweriold line 25 with a correspondingbottom :flap .130, 3|,32, 333;theseibdtblank of Fig. 1. provided by the out line I4 can be less than28 tom flaps being successively separated from one another by the cutlines or gashes 34. The lines I5, I6, 25 are fold lines in the assemblyof the container: and it is preferred to assure folding at predeterminedlocations by scoring the blank along these lines. It will be noted thatthe blank can be formed from fiber board, corrugated board, etc., by theusual factory operations of punching with cutting and scoring rules, orby the use of cutting and scoring rollers, or by use of band or othersaws for cutting the edges and gashes, or by various combinations ofthese and other operations known to box manufacturers.

The blank of Figure l is preferably partly formed at the factory, byemploying a fabric tape 40 to join the free edge of the front subpanelI3 to the corresponding part of the free edge of the side panel I9,therewith folding the various panels about their hinge lines I5 andforming a prism which can then be crushed down (Figure 7 by pressure inthe direction of the arrows, to form a flattened structure of double thethickness of the original material. Thus, the boxes can be sold andshipped in flat condition from the factory to the packer.

' When the packer desires to employ the container, he continues with apartial assembly by opening the flattened illustrative container torectangular tubular form and folding the bottom 'flaps 3|], 32 inwardand then folding the bottom flaps 3|, 33 inward so that two layers offlaps are formed, with use of a cemented tape 6i over the abutting edgeson the flaps 3!, 33, and continued around the horizontal edges and ontothe side walls I0, I2. Tapes 42 may also be employed over thesehorizontal edges, for connecting the flaps 3|, 33 with the side wallsIII, I2 and sealing these edges. The top flaps 20, 22 are similarlyfolded inward and then the flap 2I is brought over them (Figure 2) andthe short tapes 43 are applied over the edges of flap 2| and side wallsIII to secure the parts and seal the container along these lines. Itwill be noted that the structure can be sold and delivered in this form.

In this condition as shown in Figure 2, the top panel portion I30 of thefront wall can be swung to the side, with its flap 23, about thevertical hinge provided in the blank material by the corresponding foldline I5; and the packer thus has access to the interior of the containerabove the cut edges of the lower panel I3 of the front wall, provided bythe out line or gash IA of the As indicated above, the edge inches fromthe floor, when the box is standing in the position shown in Figure 2,even for a container having a total height exceeding 60 inches. Forexample, with a 50 inch container,

the line I4 may be placed 20 inches from the floor or bench, wherebyeven a short woman packer can deposit articleswith care upon the bottomwall of the box. This is of great value, as it avoids crumpling of piecegoods at the bottom ends of the bolts.

The lading is built up within the container, in the case of packingfolded textile goods or individually-packaged articles, with a slidingof the last row or rows of articles into position top panel I33 comesinto alignment with the top edge of the lower panel I3 so that thepanels [3, I30 are co-planar. In this position of parts, a cementingtape M can be pasted over the adjacent edges of the panels I3, I30 andaround the upright edges of the box onto the side walls l0, I2. Also, atape 45 can be cemented over the vertical edge provided by the upperpanel I30 and the side wall I9; tapes 46 can be cemented at the tophorizontal edges to join the flap 23 with the side walls I3, I2; and atape 8'! can be cemented over the co-planar surfaces adjacent theabutment of the top flaps 2|, 23, carrying this tape 41 down onto theside walls I9, I2. Thus, the completed package as shown in Figure 3 hasits edges joined and sealed by tapes for providing strength andpreventing loss of contents, penetration of dirt, or pilfering.

In the modified form shown in Figures 4 to 6, the rear blank has insuccession a side wall panel '50, a rear panel 5!, a side wall panel 52and a front wall provided by a main panel portion 53, and an uppersub-panel portion 253, I53; these panels being successively connectedacross fold lines 55. Fold lines 53 define connections of these verticalwall panels with corresponding top flaps 33, SI, 62, 63 and I33; theflaps 53 and I63 together providing a top flap structure for the frontwall. In corresponding fashion, fold lines 65 provide connection of thevertical wall panels with the bottom flaps 10, II, I2 and 13. The topflaps are separated successively by the gashes 64, and the lower flapsby the'gashes 14. The individual flaps 33, I33 are separated from oneanother by a weakening line I63 shown as provided by longitudinallyaligned slits cut through the material, this line of slits beingcontinued onto the front wall to provide for separation of the frontwall sub-panels 253, I53, in conjunction with a similar weakening lineI61 extending horizontally on the front wall to provide separation ofsub-panels 253, I53 from sub-panel 53. Thus, the blank of Figure 4 canbe manufactured as described above for the blank of Figure l, partlyassembled by use of a vertical edge tape 33 (Figure 5) connecting thefront panel 53 with the side panel 59 corresponding to -with theircorresponding flaps, remain integrally joined with the portionscomprising the panels I53, 253 and flaps 63, I63.

At the packers plant, the blank is set up in essentially the same manneras described for structures Figures 1 to- 3, wherewith a partiallyassembled container as in Figure 5 is produced. The weakening lines I66,I61 are broken through and the upper doors provided by the panels I53,253 are swung sidewise about their vertical hinges provided respectivelyby the upper part of the tape and by a fold line 55,-carryingwith themtheir top flaps 33, I33, for example to the positions shown in Figure 5,in which packing can be accomplished in the manner described for theform of Figures 1 to 3. Here, also, the container can be sold anddelivered in this state of assembly. When packing is completed, the doorpanels I53, 253 with their flaps are swung to closed position and thesealing tape 84 (cor responding to tape 45) applied across the abutmentedges of the front wall panels 53, I53,..253,

with the ends of the tape extending onto the side walls 52, 50. Tape 85is cemented across the abutment edges where the panels 153, 253 join,with this tape 85 being extended also over the top of the container toconnect and seal the top flaps 63, I63 and being carried past theirabutment with the top flap 6|. The tape 86 (corresponding to tape 41) iscemented over the abutment of the flaps 63, I63 with the flap 6|, andhas its ends carried over the horizontal edges and onto the side walls50, 52. Tapes 46 can be used. Thus, this form of construction likewiseprovides a strong and tightly sealed box, as shown in Figure 6, withsmooth external walls having the various lines of abutment and edges ofjuncture of the door structure and flaps connected and sealed bycemented tapes.

Each of these packages, upon arrival at the retail store, for example,can be easily opened by splitting the tapes 44, 45, 46 and 41 for theform of Figures 1 to 3; or the tapes 84, 85, 86, 45 for the form ofFigures 4 to 6. This frees the doors so that they may be opened withtheir flaps to the positions shown in Figures 2 and 5, respectively, andpart or all of the merchandise can be removed. It will be noted that thecontainers form excellent storage boxes at the store, as the doorstructures can be swung closed again without trouble, and can be held inclosed position by a short piece of tape, thereby preventing the entryof dust or dirt to the goods remaining in the container.

It is obvious that the invention is not limited to the illustrativeforms of construction, but that it may be employed in many ways withinthe scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

A tall upright container formed from a onepiece fiber board rectangularblank out and scored so that when assembled a shipping container isprovided comprising a rear panel, a front panel and side panels, each ofsaid panels having an integral flap forming a bottom end closure onwhich said container normally rests and is packed, said panels beingdimensioned so as to provide a packing space of greater depth than thenormal reach of a packer, said side panels at their upper ends havingintegral flaps folded into a common plane and said rear panel at itsupper end having an integral flap folded down onto the side panel flapsand secured to the side walls by taping, said front panel being dividedhorizontally approximately midway its height to provide upper and lowersub-panels, said lower sub-panel being rigidly connected to the sidepanels to define with the side and rear panels a packin space beneaththe upper terminus of said lower panel which has a depth not exceedingthe normal reach of a packer, said upper sub-panel being initiallyconnected to one of said side panels so as to swing outwardly and forman access opening for packing the container, said upper sub-panel havingan integral flap dimensioned to overlie the upper side panel flaps, andabut the free edge of the upper rear panel flap, said container beingclosed by swinging said upper sub-panel into the same plane as the lowersub-panel with its integral flap overlying said upper side panel flapsand with its free edge abutting the free edge of the upper rear wallflap and by taping said last named abutting edges, the adjacent edges ofthe upper and lower subpanels, and the free side of the upper sub-panelto the adjacent side panel.

SAMUEL P. BELSINGER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,102,820 Thompson July 7, 1914 1,509,383 Walter Sept. 23,1924 1,616,014 Walter Feb. 1, 1927 1,714,730 Rice May 28, 1929 2,447,677Williams Aug. 24, 1948 2,453,614 Belsinger Nov. 9, 1948

